After both having extra time off, the Port Allegany Gators and the Keystone Panthers will shake off the cobwebs and face off against one another at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday.
Port Allegany's tournament run continued when they took on Coudersport last Wednesday. Port Allegany took a 59-41 bruising from Coudersport. The Gators were down 46-23 at the end of the third quarter, which was just too much to recover from.
Ella Moses
| 02/12/25 vs Coudersport | 3 |
| 02/10/25 @ Austin | 6 |
| 02/05/25 vs Galeton | 4 |
| 02/04/25 @ Oswayo Valley | 5 |
| 01/31/25 @ Cameron County | 6 |
| + 9 more games |
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Ella Moses, who dropped a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds. She is also on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in each of the last 14 games she's played. Peyton Gordon was another key player, putting up six points and seven boards.
Even though they lost, Port Allegany smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 20 offensive rebounds. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive boards in 19 consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Keystone had already won seven in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 22.9 points) and they went ahead and made it eight last Friday. Everything went their way against the Knights/Damsels as they made off with a 54-31 win. With the Panthers ahead 37-13 at the half, the matchup was all but over already.
Port Allegany better focus on containing Ashlee Albright and Isabella Brandon as the pair were huge in Keystone's win. Albright went 6-for-12 on her way to 17 points and five steals, while Brandon went 5-for-10 to rack up 14 points and five steals. What's more, Brandon also posted a 75% three-point shooting accuracy, which is the highest she's achieved since back in December of 2024. Another player making a difference was Addison Say, who posted seven points.
Port Allegany's loss ended a four-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 17-5. Those victories came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 28.5 points over those games. As for Keystone, they pushed their record up to 15-7 with the victory, which was their fourth straight on the road.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Port Allegany has been crashing the boards this season, having averaged 34.6 rebounds per game. However, it's not like Keystone struggles in that department as they've been averaging 29.3 boards. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Port Allegany came up short against Keystone when the teams last played back in February of 2019, falling 36-26. Can Port Allegany avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
